Lucrative Liberals

Ford heads south

Premier DOUG FORD is back stateside this week, doing his Captain Canada thing with governors. Meanwhile, wannabe Liberal leaders are bringing in the dough.

FUNDRAISING WATCH — Grit contenders continue to haul in the big bucks as they campaign for the top provincial job. Another contender is on the board since I first reported the numbers earlier this month.

That would be MPP ROB CERJANEC, who, according to real-time donation disclosures from Elections Ontario, has raked in $58,770 so far. And the rest:

• NAVDEEP BAINS: $309,702

• LEE FAIRCLOUGH: $184,594

• DYLAN MARANDO: $122,344

The fifth contestant, ERIC LOMBARDI, hasn’t reported any contributions just yet. That doesn’t necessarily mean he hasn’t raised any cash — there can be lag time between money coming in and disclosures showing up — but optics-wise, it isn’t exactly a strong show of force at this stage of the game.

Money isn’t an exact proxy for support levels either. Leadership races are won through membership sign-ups, organization, …